ETHAN
~
I turned my head lazily, eyes flicking toward the glowing red digits of the digital clock on my dresser. 2:45 AM.
A soft sound followed—plastic hitting hardwood. The bottle of water I’d been holding slipped from my fingers and rolled across the floor, forgotten. I didn’t even flinch. My body was already moving, mind locked on one singular gravitational pull in this cold, dark house.
Her.
I stepped toward the door, my bare feet silent against the polished floors. My hand wrapped around the brass doorknob and twisted it slowly before slipping into the hallway.
The second floor groaned under my weight, old wood and history soaked into every beam. This house had too many rooms, too many corners. But hers? I could hear hers even when she wasn’t speaking. Humming off-key in the sh
